Adoptive immunotherapy of cancer refers to a therapeutic approach in which immune cells with an antitumor reactivity are administered to a tumor-bearing host, with the aim that the cells mediate either directly or indirectly, the regression of an established tumor. Transfusion of lymphocytes, particularly T lymphocytes, falls into this category and investigators at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have used autologous reinfusion of peripheral blood lymphocytes or tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), T cell cultures from biopsies of subcutaneous lymph nodules, to treat several human cancers (Rosenberg, S. A., U.S. Pat. No. 4,690,914, issued Sep. 1, 1987; Rosenberg, S. A., et al., 1988, N. England J. Med. 319:1676-1680). For example, TIL expanded in vitro in the presence of interleukin (IL)-2 have been adoptively transferred to cancer patients, resulting in tumor regression in select patients with metastatic melanoma. Melanoma TIL grown in IL-2 have been identified as activated T lymphocytes CD3.sup.+ HLA-DR.sup.+, which are predominantly CD8.sup.+ cells with unique in vitro antitumor properties. Many long-term melanoma TIL cultures lyse autologous tumors in a specific MHC class I- and T cell antigen receptor dependent manner (Topalian, S. L., et al., 1989, J. Immunol. 142:3714). However, studies of TIL derived from other types of tumors have revealed only scant evidence for cytolytic or proliferative antitumor immune specificity (Topalian, S. L. et al., 1990, in Important Advances in Oncology, V. T. DeVita, S. A. Hellman and S. A. Rosenberg, eds. J. B. Lippincott, Philadelphia, pp. 19-41). In addition, the toxicity of the high-dose IL-2 + activated lymphocyte treatment advocated by the NCI group has been considerable, including high fevers, severe rigors, hypotension, damage to the endothelial wall due to capillary leak syndrome, and various adverse cardiac events such as arrhythmias and myocardial infarction (Rosenberg S. A., et al., 1988, N. England J. Med. 319:1676-1680).